"Already divided over the issues of climate change and sea-level rise, Delaware politicians, voters and communities now face a costly debate over short- and long-term rescue options for eroding beaches along the Delaware Bay and Delaware River."

"Costs for some plans could soar into the tens of millions of dollars. And officials admit that in some areas along the bayshore, the primary beneficiaries would often be upscale owners of second homes on beaches barely accessible to the public.

That fact already has widened divisions between some inland residents and those living in the bayside’s more-exclusive and private neighborhoods.

The Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control has estimated that it would cost $67 million to pump sand onto beaches to protect them against a once-in-a-decade storm. Repeat projects could be required every decade, with total loss of the beaches virtually certain by the end of the century, under DNREC’s climate change forecasts."